For the Colonial Lovers.....

[Bruceswar]

Here are a Few Coins that you may Enjoy.... One is (I Believe Very Scarce even as a copy). It is a Sommer Island Coin..... Both are copies... The other is a nice Mass Cent Copy... Scan are not the best color but what can you do?

[Bruceswar]

Now the Back.....

[Bruceswar]

Coin 2 Front...

[Bruceswar]

Coin 2 Back...

[JadeRareCoin]

Thanks for sharing images of these cast copies. I think that the Hogge Money Shilling is a cast made from hand engraved dies, whereas the Mass Cent looks as if it was cast from a die made from an actual host coin (genuine Mass Cent). The design elements seem very reasonable, but all of the detail is washed out and "fuzzy", which is a key sign in identifying a cast copy. We buy these types of copies whenever we can as a reference set. Some are very well done, whereas others are comical. I sold an electrotype of a Connecticut M.1E at the Baltimore ANA for $150. That particular copy was the most deceptive that I have ever seen. Even the weight was right on the mark. The giveaway was the seam at the edge, the feel and the ring of the coin. I think that it was a copy that dated back to the late 1800's, but that's just a guess based on the "look and feel" of the coin. Other colonial copies sell for $10 to $30 on average. Modern copies are worth even less....maybe $2 or $3.

 

I know of a guy who is a gunsmith by trade. He does it the old fashioned way, too. Having the skills and the tools, he started engraving dies of Pine Tree and Oak Tree coinage about 20 years ago. Once a set of dies was completed, he would strike several pieces. He has been carrying a few of the pieces in his pocket and wallet for approximately 20 years. At the last MSNS Spring Show he gave me one of his more recently struck examples and showed me his pocket pieces. VERY DECEPTIVE. If he wanted to, this guy could make exact copies of known examples. He actually replicated the minting process of the 1600's Massachusetts coiners to be assured that the coins were realistic. He used silver stock as well.

 

 

[Bruceswar]

Well before I had found out the Mass Cent.. was a Copy/ Fake I sold it to a man who was a Colonial Collector.... Then he found out that the coin was not real so .. it was like no sale ever happened.. If it were not for one rim ding showing alittle wierd composition.. this could very easily be mastaken for one.. scan did not come out good at all on these coins.. The Mass cent is a very nice copy... Not the usall castinh marks or lines no copy on it...Features seem in line... Very well done whoever made it..